Happy Fall!!

Normally people tend to think of this as the end of another growing season, with maybe a few potatoes or sweet potatoes or maybe some winter squash left to be harvested. It doesn’t have to be the end of the growing season for serious gardeners, though. There is still plenty of time to get some more veggies grown before we get our first serious frost. Radishes, beets, carrots, turnips, sugar snap peas, lettuce, and greens will all produce a harvest by Thanksgiving. Several of our gardeners nurture greens throughout the winter to provide fresh produce.

In addition, if your area has a tendency towards milder winters, an edible ground cover that produces shoots and eventually a bean mixture might be an option, particularly if protected by leaves or surrounded by plastic milk jugs filled with water on colder days.

You can also bring your garden indoors. Tommy Toes, peppers, chard, eggplant, those potatoes that have decided to grow eyes, herbs can all be grown in a 5 gallon bucket. A cheapie shop light will provide the additional light they may need if you live up a holler with limited direct sunlight over the winter. I like to put some of my herbs in a long planter on the dining room table as a center piece; rosemary especially looks nice over the holidays. Nothing tastes better during the holidays than your own fresh veggies and turkey seasoned with your own fresh herbs.